Brooder-heater.



PATENT OFFICE.

HARMON A. GEORGE, OF PETALUMA, CALIFORNIA.

BRO ODER-HEAIER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

Application filed August 6, 1913. Serial No. 783,325.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARMON A. GEORGE, a citizen of the United States,residing at letaluma, in the county of Sonoma and State of California,have invented new and useful Improvements in Brooder-Heaters, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to a brooder heater.

The object of this invention is to provide a heater for brooders foryoung chicks in which the heating is obtained by the dlrect introductionof warmed pure air into the brooder as distinguished from directradiation.

Another object is to so construct the heating elements of the brooderthat the products of combustion will not be delivered thereto or mixedwith the warmed fresh air admitted to the brooder chamber.

The invention consists of the parts and the construction and combinationof parts as hereinafter more fully described and claimed, havingreference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a View invertical section of the invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of same withparts broken away.

In the drawings A represents the side walls of a brooder house of anysuitable construction having the usual floor B. Disposed at anyconvenient point in the house A is a brooder-box, consisting of atop 2,supported on legs 3, and having a continuous peripheral vertical sidestrip 4, the lower edge of which is spaced from the floor B to allow theingress and egress of the chicks thereunder. The strip 4 has ventilatingperforations 4 around the box beneath the top 2 for the purposehereinafter stated. Acurtain 5 depends from the lower edge of the strip4, and a circular curtain 6 depends from the underside of the top 2about midway between the outer edge and its center. The curtains 5 and 6are of any suitable soft fabric and extend to a point adjacent the floorB, and divide the space in the brooder-box into two broodercompartments, indicated at C and D, respectively, in Fig. 1, and whichcompartments are designed in practice to be kept at differenttemperatures.

Disposed beneath the floor B is a fresh alr supply pipe or conduit 7,which opens at its inner end to the central or inner compartment Cthrough the floor B, and has its outer end terminating outside of thewalls A of the brooder house, which outer end is normally closed by ahinged door or gate 8 of any suitable description. Opening to theconduit 7 near its outer end is a downwardly extending drum 9, throughwhich fresh air is admitted to the conduit 7, and placed within the drum9 and spaced therefrom, is a second drum 10, the lower end of whichextends below the lower end of the outer drum 9 and surrounds a burner11, of any suitable construction. The upper end of the inner drum 10connects with and opens into a pipe 12 extending into the conduit 7 andterminating in a T-joint 13. Leading from the T ]oint 13 is a horizontalpipe 14 which extends approximately the length of the conduit 7 andreturns to a point adjacent the outer end thereof, where it terminatesin a T-joint 15, from which an upwardly extending pipe 16 leads outsideof the walls A of the brooder house. The inner drum 10, pipes 12, 14.,and 16, form a flue for the hot gases generated by the burner 11, which,on passing through the pipe 14L heat the latter so as to raise thetemperature of the air in the pipe 7 by radiation. The outer ends of theT-joints 1315 are closed by means of plugs 17, which are removed when itis desired to clean the pipe 1a; the door 8 being provided as a means ofaccess thereto. The inner end of the pipe 7, where it extends throughthe floor B, is designed to connect with a detachable extension or jointof pipe 18, which projects upward and terminates a short distance belowthe top 2 and opens to the inner compartment C. The pipe 18 is removedand the open inner end of the pipe 7 is closed by a suitable cap when itis desired to remove the brooder and after the chicks have attained suchsize as not to require it. Formed in the top 2, immediately over theopen upper end of the pipe 18, is an opening 19 which is normally closedby means of a cap 20. When it is desired to heat the brooder housedirect, or reduce the temperature of the brooder-box, the cap 20 isremoved so that the hot air emitting from the pipe 18 will be dischargedinto the brooder house through the opening 19.

In the operation of the invention, the hot gases generated by the burner11 pass upward through the drum 10 and pipe 12, thence through the pipe14 and are discharged from the pipe 16 outside of the brooder house. Thehot gases act to heat the pipe 14 which will then perform the functionof a heating coil and heat the air surrounding it in the conduit 7. Itis manifest that any number of pipes 14 may be disposed' innercompartment C, thence under and be tween the curtain 6 into the outercompartment D from whence it passes into the brooder house beneath andbetween the curtains 3; fresh air entering the conduit 7 through thedrum 9 as the heated air passes therefrom. From this it will be seenthat a constant supply of heated fresh air will be delivered to thebrooder, the incoming fresh air crowding out the impure air breathed bythe chicks, through the perforations 4' formed in the side strips eladjacent to the underside of the top 2.

The pipes 14 and conduit 7 are of such length that the heat generated bythe burner 11 will be fully utilized in heating the air in the conduit7. The temperature of the heated air can be regulated by adjusting theflame of the burner 11 in any desired manner as required.

The chief feature of the invention is the long heating chamber or trunk7 with one or more heat-conducting pipes 14 whereby in this long airtrunk extending a substantial distance under the brooder-box practicallyall the heat generated by the burner is extracted and fresh hot air isdelivered into the brooder; the brooder hood 10 extending a little belowand spaced from the walls of the outer hood 9 so that a sufficient draftis created for the fresh air. This construction insures a large volumeof fresh warm air to the brooder and none of the products of combustionentering the brooder.

Having thus described my invention, what 1 claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is:

1. A heating system for brooders, comprising in combination with thebrooder-box, a horizontal air conduit beneath and adjacent to the bottomof the brooder and proj ecting beyond on one side, said conduit havingan upright discharge portion within the brooder-box, the lattercomprising a central covered hover with concentric chambers, into theinner of which said upright portion of the conduit discharges and abovethe floor of the brooder, a downwardly extending, open-end air inletdrum for and on the opposite end of said conduit and external to thebrooder, a valve plate on the conduit adjacent to said drum, and aheater below and within the drum and having a stack extending verticallythrough the drum with a horizontal return branch running the length ofthe conduit for heating the air traversing the same and having adischarge external to the conduit and to the brooder, the air for rightportion within the brooder box, the -latter comprising a cover hoverwith concentric brooder chambers, into the inner of which said uprightportion of the conduit discharges at a point above the floor andbelowthe cover of the hover, said conduit having at its outer end andexternal to the brooder a downwardly extended open end air inlet drumthrough which fresh air from the outside end of the conduit is admitted,a vertical drum within and spaced fromthe air inlet drum, and ahorizontal U-shaped heating coil within said conduit and havingconnection with said vertical drum, said heating coil having a verticalstack extending through the conduit and discharging at a point externalto the conduit and brooder adjacent the vertical drum. 7

A heating system for brooders comprising a brooder box, an externalcylindrical conduit adjacent the bottom of said box, and extending toone side thereof, said conduit opening at its inner end to the brooderbox, a vertical intake drum communicating with the other end of saidconduit, a heating drum concentrically arranged within said intake drumand extending within the conduit, a U-shaped heating coil connected withthe heating drum and located within and extending the entire length ofthe conduit, and a vertical discharge pipe for said heating coil locatedadjacent the heating drum and discharging outside the air conduit.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

HARMON A. GEORGE.

Witnesses MARTIN H. Pos'rLooM, W. T. SPRIDGEN.

Copies of thll patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

